Overview

The Ogre is the 4th highest mountain in the Seven Devils Wilderness at 9,256 feet. It presents a very steep intimidating 1,050 foot northeast face to Upper Cannon Lakes. With its easy access close to the cross country pass at She Devil, and its easy class 2 west ridge, the Ogre sees quite a few ascents by peakbaggers and hikers. The first ascent of the Ogre is unknown. When A.H. Marshall first climbed the peak in 1943, he found a cairn already on top. He named the mountain Mount Appollyon, a name which the USGS did not use.

The Goblin is the 7th highest summit here at 8,985 feet. The standard west ridge provides an easy class 3 scramble to its summit after climbing the Ogre. The Goblin has approximately 330 feet of vertical relief above the low point of the ridgeline between the Goblin and the Ogre. The northeast face of the Goblin is a steep mass of Andesite rising 850 feet above Upper Cannon Lakes. The first ascent was by A.H. Marshall and Ed Hughes in August 1935.

The rock is this area is generally poor in quality, and offers limited protection in some spots (knifeblades and RURPs would be very handy if doing first ascents). The mountains do lend themselves to scrambling quite nicely featuring rock with many edges. The range has seen very few technical ascents. Routefinding can be the crux on some of the harder routes.

Getting There

Drive US95 to the town of Riggins, Idaho. About 1 mile south of town, turn right onto Seven Devils Road, then drive 17.4 miles to the trailhead at Seven Devils Campground at 7,600 feet. The road starts out as paved then becomes steep and winding gravel for the remainder. Watch out for cows on the road, this is a grazing area. Figure on 30 minutes to drive this.

From the upper campground, find the trail heading to Seven Devils Lake. Hike 150 yards to the lake, then look for the nonmaintained cross country climber's path heading west towards the ridgeline. Hike up to the ridgeline, then traverse it south. From here traverse under the northeast face of the Tower of Babel to the notch between it and Mount Baal. Drop down into the Upper Cannon Lake cirque on the other side. From here you can hike up to the ridgeline to attempt either peak.

Another option is to hike the Goat Pass trail south from the Seven Devils Campground, until reaching either the Cannon Creek drainage or the Hansen Creek drainage. Follow either drainage up to their respective lakes and camp there. From either lake, both of the peaks can be climbed.

Routes Overview

The Ogre

West Ridge - Class 2 - A loose pile of shit scree hell to the summit. Highly not recommended.

Direct West Ridge - Class 3+ - This route follows the rock ridge just south of the standard West Ridge route. It features solid rock, fun scrambling, and easy routefinding

East Ridge - Class 3 or 4 - This route starts from the ridgeline between the Ogre and the Goblin, then enters the west gulley on the south side of the peak which gains access to the summit. A nice scramble.

North Face - Class4 - The large couloir and chimney system up the center of the north face. Still waiting a second ascent?

The Goblin

West Ridge - Class 3 - An easy and decent scramble from the high ridgeline between the Ogre and the Goblin.

East Ridge - Class 3+ - An enjoyable scramble from the long ridgeline that descends to the east. Be very careful of what access point you take to get off / on this ridgeline. Possible scree hell. I'd recommend getting on the ridge very low, down near the Goat Pass trail.

Red Tape

No permits, no fees, and no parking passes.

When To Climb

Early July to the end of September is the normal climbing season. The trailhead is at 7,400 feet, and will be snowed in if you go too early in the season. Bring a pair of skies if you want a winter ascent, snowmobiles are forbidden here.

According to records, none of the major peaks of the Seven Devils Wilderness have seen a winter ascent.

Camping

Camping is not restricted. There are several campsites at the various different trailheads that access the range. Even better, there are dozens of beautiful high alpine lakes with excellent views of the surrounding peaks to camp at.